Very interesting report. I've long been curious about that ORD-DEL flight. I've known a few folks who've taken it but have not done so myself (tends to be expensive, and I don't fly AA enough to use miles).

A question about the routing: I'm surprised that you did not take the polar route and instead took what appears to be the significantly longer way (at least in miles) across the North Atlantic, Northern Europe, and Russia, then making your way down through Central Asia. Any particular reason for that?